Colors and Their Common Associations
Just as there are individual color preferences, there also are strong associations with each of the basic colors that are shared by almost everyone.
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By Rosemary Sadez Friedmann
Scripps Howard News Service
As soon as we're old enough to know our colors, we start to have favorites. Ask any 4-year-old what color they like and they'll tell you in a nanosecond. And just as there are individual color preferences, there also are strong associations with each of the basic colors that are shared by almost everyone.
Red, for example, is viewed as an exciting, dramatic and rich color. Think of the associations with the words "red carpet treatment." Red also is passionate; think of "The Lady in Red." And it stimulates the appetite; think of your favorite Italian restaurant.
The darker shades of red such as burgundy and maroon have a rich and stately feeling about them; think of the Victorian era. A front door painted burgundy is dramatic and inviting.
Here are some of the other colors and their associations:
- Orange gives off a cheerful aura. It is bold and exciting, friendly and informal. The dark, muted version if orange is rust. Rust colors in the living room or family room are inviting and give a feeling of casualness.
Designer Erinn Valencich creates an eclectic yet sophisticated dining room by combining yellow and gray.(Rosemary Sadez Friedmann, a Naples, Fla., interior designer, is the author of Mystery of Color, available in the HGTV store.)
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